Stanley Havili

USC fullback Stanley Havili moved a chair into his dressing stall and sat with his back to teammates and reporters after last week's embarrassing loss to Stanford at the Coliseum. Havili could not bring himself to talk about the 55-21 defeat. The fourth-year junior carried the loss with him through the early part of this week, but at the end of Friday's early morning workout he sounded as if he finally had let it go. "The way we practice, I think the confidence comes back and guys believe in the program," he said.

USC players were off Thursday, but work continues seemingly nonstop on the new $70-million John McKay Center, which is rising on campus across the street from Brian Kennedy-Howard Jones Field. Workers broke ground on the 110,000-square-foot, three-level building in January and construction is on schedule to be finished by midsummer. Coach Lane Kiffin charts the building's progress every morning when he makes the short trek from Heritage Hall to the practice field. "The crews working over there amaze me," Kiffin said.

Stanley Havili is staying humble. USC's senior fullback is coming off one of his best games, but he has not forgotten last season's debacle at Washington, where his third-quarter fumble cost the Trojans momentum and helped send them on their way to defeat. "Obviously, my turnover was a big problem," Havili said Tuesday as the Trojans began preparations for Saturday's Pacific 10 Conference game against the Huskies at the Coliseum. Havili's fumble wasn't the Trojans' only miscue in Seattle ?

USC took Monday off from practice, but players still attended meetings in preparation for their Sept. 3 opener against Minnesota. That gave USC's running backs coach another chance to quiz and encourage his charges. "I've finally got the [meeting] room the way I always had it," the coach formerly known as Kennedy Pola said last week. Much has changed since the former Trojans fullback returned to USC in 2010 for his second stint as an assistant coach. His name, for one. It won't be official until all of the legal paperwork he initiated has been processed, but he already is listed as Kennedy Polamalu in the school's 2011 media guide.

USC fullback Stanley Havili described it as "a bonding moment. " Cornerback T.J. Bryant , wearing dark sunglasses, said it was "over and done with. " So ended at least one distraction of Coach Lane Kiffin's first training camp, the teammates standing side by side after practice Saturday and saying there were no hard feelings over the altercation that led to a fractured cheekbone and surgery for Bryant. Kiffin allowed Havili to return to practice after holding him out of team activities for a day for injuring Bryant during a conditioning drill on July 30. Kiffin had said Friday, "We just don't condone that behavior," and that he did not know how long he would keep Havili away from the team.

Lane Kiffin has been relatively quiet since returning to USC, but his actions and words at Trojans practices are loud and clear: The status quo is not going to cut it. Kiffin reiterated that point Saturday after a 93-play scrimmage. Matt Barkley's five touchdown passes were offset by an ineffective running game. "Our running backs need to learn how to run it because we don't have a clue right now on what we need to do to be a championship running team," Kiffin said.

It wasn't an overwhelming NFL draft for USC, but it was a history-making one. In the seventh round Saturday, three Trojans were selected in consecutive order: running back Stanley Havili to Philadelphia (No. 240 overall), receiver David Ausberry to Oakland (241) and linebacker Malcolm Smith to Seattle (242). The closest USC has come to a run like that in the NFL's modern era was in 1977, when Ricky Bell was picked first overall, Marvin Powell went fourth and Gary Jeter fifth. Other Trojans taken Saturday were tight end Jordan Cameron (fourth round, Cleveland)

Safety Marshall Jones , slowed by injuries throughout his USC career, is expected to play a larger role Saturday night when the Trojans meet Arizona State in a Pacific 10 Conference game at the Coliseum. Jones, a junior who starred at Westlake Village Oaks Christian High, redshirted last season after suffering a broken vertebra in his neck. He has played as a reserve or on special teams in every game this season, but worked with the starters this week and could alternate with Jawanza Starling against the Sun Devils.

USC running back Dillon Baxter finally scored his first touchdown in USC's 37-35 loss to No. 16 Stanford on Saturday night at Stanford Stadium. Baxter scored on an eight-yard run in the first quarter after taking a direct snap. His run gave USC a 7-0 lead. Baxter had a hand in 79 touchdowns last season as a senior at San Diego Mission Bay High, but he was off to a slow start at USC. Coach Lane Kiffin suspended Baxter for the opener at Hawaii for violating team rules.

It wasn't an overwhelming NFL draft for USC, but it was a history-making one. In the seventh round Saturday, three Trojans were selected in consecutive order: running back Stanley Havili to Philadelphia (No. 240 overall), receiver David Ausberry to Oakland (241) and linebacker Malcolm Smith to Seattle (242). The closest USC has come to a run like that in the NFL's modern era was in 1977, when Ricky Bell was picked first overall, Marvin Powell went fourth and Gary Jeter fifth. Other Trojans taken Saturday were tight end Jordan Cameron (fourth round, Cleveland)

Hours after USC defeated UCLA, several Trojans assistants hit the recruiting trail. Coach Lane Kiffin said he would join them Monday after a team dinner at USC President Max Nikias' home Sunday night. And so it goes for a program that will not play in a bowl game for the first time since the 2000 season. Asked how many incoming players he would like to have enroll next month, which would allow the Trojans to count them against their 2010 recruiting class, Kiffin quipped, "About 45. That would be good.

USC quarterback Matt Barkley , on track to start against UCLA on Saturday night, said Thursday that he was not concerned that the Bruins might target his injured left ankle. "It might happen, maybe get a late hit or something like that," Barkley said after practice. "I don't think you can be worried about that when you play because that will just hold you back. " Barkley, sidelined last week against Notre Dame, took the majority of first-team reps and showed improved mobility.

Linebackers Chris Galippo and Devon Kennard came up big for the Trojans on Saturday night in a 20-16 loss against Notre Dame at the Coliseum. Galippo, who suffered a concussion last week against Oregon State, was animatedly calling out signals and directing teammates moments before leaping to intercept a first-quarter pass by Fighting Irish quarterback Tommy Rees . The play helped set up USC's only first-half points, a 45-yard field goal by Joe Houston with 4 minutes 9 seconds left in the first quarter.

Oregon's Autzen Stadium is rightfully recognized as one of college football's toughest places for a visiting team to play. But Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Ore., where No. 20 USC plays Oregon State on Saturday, has been just as unkind for the Trojans in their last few visits. USC is 1-2 in its last three games there, and even the victory was fraught with the unexpected. On Nov. 6, 2004, the top-ranked Trojans fell behind 13-0 in a fog-shrouded stadium that made visibility nearly impossible for players, coaches, fans and media.

Motivation won't be a problem for USC on Saturday night against Arizona. Not for Trojans upperclassmen, anyway. Last week, four seniors received invitations to the Senior Bowl, a prestigious evaluation stop on the way to next April's NFL draft. But center Kristofer O'Dowd, fullback Stanley Havili, cornerback Shareece Wright and receiver Ronald Johnson aren't the only Trojans seeking to impress pro scouts over the final four games. With USC facing another bowl-game ban in 2011, draft-eligible juniors and third-year sophomores could be considering moves to the pros.

Hours after USC defeated UCLA, several Trojans assistants hit the recruiting trail. Coach Lane Kiffin said he would join them Monday after a team dinner at USC President Max Nikias' home Sunday night. And so it goes for a program that will not play in a bowl game for the first time since the 2000 season. Asked how many incoming players he would like to have enroll next month, which would allow the Trojans to count them against their 2010 recruiting class, Kiffin quipped, "About 45. That would be good.

The big videoboard that looms over the Coliseum's peristyle end has always been tempting for USC players, who admit they glance up from the huddle to watch replays. "Especially if I know I missed a block," fullback Stanley Havili said. "I want to see what happened." Now Havili and his teammates will get a clearer view of the good, the bad and the ugly with the debut of a giant high-definition screen, among other upgrades at Saturday's home opener against Ohio State. During a test run this week, the $2-million board showed crystalline images of rowers gliding across the water while a new $1-million sound system pumped Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody."

Safety Marshall Jones , slowed by injuries throughout his USC career, is expected to play a larger role Saturday night when the Trojans meet Arizona State in a Pacific 10 Conference game at the Coliseum. Jones, a junior who starred at Westlake Village Oaks Christian High, redshirted last season after suffering a broken vertebra in his neck. He has played as a reserve or on special teams in every game this season, but worked with the starters this week and could alternate with Jawanza Starling against the Sun Devils.

USC tailback Allen Bradford , who was mostly shut down last week at Stanford, is looking to regain his form of two weeks ago when the Trojans play California on Saturday at the Coliseum. Bradford rushed for 223 yards in USC's 32-31 loss to Washington on Oct. 2. He was held to 33 yards in the Trojans' 37-35 loss to Stanford. "There were a few times when I could have cut back and other times when I should have stayed on track," he said Wednesday. "I've got to be a little more patient on some runs and explode on others.